


A Bed in Europe (and a memory from some time ago)

by Anonymous



Category: Free!
Genre: M/M, Post Season 2, bed sharing, international meet, mentions of High Speed!2
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-01
Updated: 2014-12-31
Packaged: 2018-03-04 15:45:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3073400
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Haru had volunteered to be partnered up with a swimmer flying in from abroad.</p><p>This came as a shock to the whole team; the unsociable, quiet freestyle swimmer asking to be placed in a room with someone he'd not swam with in ages (if they'd ever even swam together at all). Expecting a certain someone, Haru doesn't really care.</p><p>Little did they know, including Haru, just how close they'd be forced to get....  again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Bed in Europe (and a memory from some time ago)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Amalthea](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amalthea/gifts).



> I don't think this came out exactly as I wanted it to, so forgive the slight awkwardness.  
> Sorry that the bed sharing wasn't as prominent in this section (it takes up less than half at this point) Dx It'll be 'fixed' next chapter! (Or rather, these two will somehow make progress in their bed-sharing adventures)
> 
> Happy Holidays!

Haru had volunteered to room with a swimmer flying in from abroad.

 

Immediately, he had felt the judgmental stares of his new teammates; for someone who had hardly showed interest in the team outside practice, suddenly volunteering to room with Japanese-born swimmers living elsewhere was a big deal to say the _least_. Even Haru, by far the most antisocial teammate, was aware of that. 

 

But it was Rin; a once scrawny boy turned muscular athlete, who'd helped him realize his desire to be in _this world_ in the first place. How could he deny them another night, another potentially awkward hotel room stay, during their first official joint meet at that?

 

So Haru had offered his name, confirmed what was necessary, then proceeded to ignore the commotion around him. He’d walked off to change, to head home and pack for the upcoming flight. As much as he wanted to continue swimming, the team flight was set to depart in a few hours and he was behind on his packing. At the very least, he would allow himself a final soak in the bath before he locked up his apartment for the next few weeks. 

  

* * *

 

 

Haru stifled a yawn. They’d finally made it out of customs, and their team had gathered a little ways beyond the exit to assemble their bearings.

 

The airport was huge and foreign, but felt even more intimidating than Australia. Maybe it was the lack of Rin to interpret for him, but all he'd managed to say when questioned by the customs officers, faced with the question “ _Why are you visiting?_ ” had been " _Swimming_." He hadn’t been the first swimmer to line up, so they'd probably been lenient with him and let him by, assuming a language barrier. He'd have to be more careful in the future; maybe, just maybe, he'd ask Rin to teach him a few helpful phrases. Like, "where is the pool?" and "swimming competition" and so on…

 

 

"Everyone here? Please reply when your names are called.” Their coach called from the front of the group.

 

“Osu!” Surrounded by cheering athletes, Haru failed to abort another yawn, and sluggishly raised his hand to cover his mouth, as dictated by politeness.

 

“…Arai?” “Here!”           “....Asahi?” “Yes!”         “.....Azumane?” “Present!”           …..

 

…..

 

Haru felt his impatience rising. The plane ride had been turbulent, and he wanted nothing more right now than a nap and a bath – not necessarily in that order. There were enough personnel to take into account that it was easy to become distracted and tune out the continuous stream of names and “ _yes!”e_ s, but Haru made sure to at least catch his name – he'd already run into problems during attendance while training, and had been threatened with loosing pool time enough to take the lesson to heart. 

 

Once the coach put away his sheets, the grumbling group of exhausted athletes and assistants began gathering luggage and miscellaneous bags lying around them in heaps, noticeably quieter than they had been at Narita. Even so, Haru couldn’t feel relieved by the sudden silence, the bumbling noises of the airport around them more than making up for it. Haru had been ready since the start, shoulder bag slung around his back since the beginning, small suitcase by his side. It was a bit more baggage than he'd brought to Australia, that one time he'd been dragged with no warning, but they were going to be in Europe for a good number of days, so taking that into account, Haru had packed heavier than he would have liked. At least he had a large number of swimsuits this time. 

 

He was shuffled off outside, stuck in the middle of the group of athletes, towards the taxi stands. It didn't seem as if there would be a bus coming to shuttle them all to their hotel, and he was proven right when shoved into the back of a taxi, crammed between a backstroke swimmer that reminded him of Ikuya, and a breast stroker reminiscent of Nao-senpai, both from the Iwatobi Middle School swim team. Sticking out from the front seat (on the wrong side of the car, he noted), were two bright heads that gave off such a strong vibe of Samezuka that Haru slumped, closing his eyes in an attempt to distance himself from his surroundings. He knew his teammates' names, of course, but it was too tiring to always have to think of them. It was Kirishima to his left anyways, and next to him on the other side…

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

The rhythmic rumble of the highway must have put him to sleep, he justified to himself when waking up in front of the hotel in an empty taxi, not-so-quiet curses flying around when luggage got stuck under seats and in the trunk. It was the Nao-senpai-lookalike beckoning to him that woke him up enough to get out of the car and collect his luggage. 

 

The next few minutes passed in a daze, as check-in, passport collection and whatever else the hotel asked of them blurred by in the lobby. Haru only felt his attention span returning when their coach addressed the team to read out room assignments. 

 

Haru was suddenly wide awake. He was surrounded by people childishly complaining about rooming partners, but paid them little mind, more occupied with scanning the lobby for other swimmers who had not arrived with them. Specifically, he was looking out for an Australian club, or maybe a group of out-of-place Japanese, or--

 

"Nanase....here's your key."

 

Haru spun around, finding his coach holding out a hotel key card. He accepted the card with hesitation, turning it around to find a sticky note with a room number inscribed on the front.

 

"Hmmm.... it doesn't seem like your roommate is here yet,” the older man sounded exhausted, looking around the room once before making eye contact with Haru. “I'll leave his key at the desk for him. Next! Nishi..."

 

Haru took a small step forward when the coach turned away, prepared to interrupt and ask for his roommate's name. But the man was too preoccupied with the next group of roommates, and Haru let his hand drop. Rin didn't seem to be here yet anyway. Maybe he'd go upstairs and sleep some more, or maybe run a bath, before _someone_ came in to steal the bathroom from him. 

 

That seemed like a good plan, so Haru dragged his meager luggage onto the elevator, riding it up to the seventh floor. Once he located their room, he hurriedly unlocked the door and pushed inside. Dropping his bags where he stood, he made a line straight for the bathroom, toeing his shoes off and leaving them lying haphazardly around the entranceway. A bath would feel good right now, to wash off the grimy feeling coating his body resulting from the plane ride, and maybe also distract him from worrying about the identity of his roommate. After all, Haru couldn't help but think while the bathtub filled up painstakingly slowly, he hadn't specifically been able to request for Rin per se.... Even Rin had only mentioned this trip in passing during one of their online conversations, leading Haru to believe Rin had travelled elsewhere, and their conversation had then diverged elsewhere entirely. 

 

Haru had to admit to himself, Rin might still be across the world in another hemisphere; but, he relaxed as he sank into the warm bathwater, there was a huge chance Rin would come. Rin was supposed to be here. Haru would take that for now, and instead let himself stop thinking, focusing only on his muscle tension slowly dissipating into the water.....

 

 

* * *

 

 

He might have dozed off for a while in the tub, but the water was still warm. Distracted from whatever had roused him, Haru leaned forward to examine the faucet; maybe this European water had some magic to it—

 

Louder noise – from the entrance this time – pulled Haru's eyes to the bathroom door, realization dawning. His "roommate" seemed to have arrived. 

 

* * *

 

 

Rin observed the mess in the area that should have been the genkan, after loudly tripping over a part of it. It seemed the other occupant had been in a huge rush to...use the bathroom?

 

There came the sound of rippling water from the bathroom, and Rin laughed under his breath. His temporary roommate reminded him of someone way too familiar. Amidst the louder splashes, what was probably the other person coming out of the bath, he allowed his attention to drift back to the bags on the floor. Come to think of it, they did look somewhat familiar, but that might have been a coincidence—

 

 

He looked up to the sound of wet footsteps resonating on the tile. The first thing he saw was, of course, a knee-length, purple striped swimsuit. Combined with all other clues, he was left with little doubt as to this particular member of the Japanese team could be. Just to make sure, he slid his gaze up over a leaned, tone body to meet with an intense blue stare before speaking

 

"Yo, Haru. Did you come out of the bath just to see me?" Rin couldn't help the smirk that crossed his face. It had been too long since he’d seen those bright blue eyes in person.

 

"...It really is you. Rin." Haru was staring at him with a less-guarded expression than usual, something akin to shock evident in his eyes and the set of his mouth. 

 

"Oh? And who did you think it would be?" Rin questioned, walking toward his rival. It really had been too long, and he was secretly eager to absorb Haru's presence again. Not that he'd admit it, even to himself. 

 

He must have gotten too close (too soon?), since Haru downturned his gaze in the opposite direction. From this distance, he could spot a faint flush on Haru's cheeks; explainable only by the temperature of his bath (or the mostly likely, but...)…

 

* * *

 

 

Haru swallowed, still looking at his bags on the ground. "Some other swimmer from abroad." He had wanted to stare at Rin for a little longer, heart lifted at seeing him enter their shared room, but it was already too much for him. Whereas before he had grown used to the little urges that popped up and consumed him in Rin's presence, their temporary separation had obviously destroyed his defenses all over again. 

 

Laughing, Rin headed back to the entranceway. Haru watched as he tidied the shared mess they had made. "If that were the case, then," Rin looked up and shot him a blinding smile. "What would you do?"

 

Haru turned his back to the dark room, and re-entered the lighted bathroom. The lack of light was casting deep shadows on Rin's face, and causing funny things to happen in his chest. "Nothing," he replied blankly, toweling off his hair. There was no point in getting back into the bath when Rin would likely force him out in a few minutes to take his own turn. 

 

He turned towards the wall with the mirror by the sink, breath hitching when he saw Rin approaching from behind. Leaving the towel to rest on his head, he gripped the edge of counter as Rin drew up behind him. Dropping his gaze to the sink in order to not meet that electric red glare, the hands landing on his towel-covered head came as a surprise to his exhausted body. Rin's hands drew along the towel until grasping the edges, gently rubbing Haru's hair until dry. 

 

"You didn't get one bit easier to read," Rin whispered, somewhere close to his ear, breath puffing on the side of Haru's neck. "Well," a dry laugh, "not that I was really expecting anything."

 

Haru's eyes flew open, leading him to question when he'd closed them in the first place. He wanted to give Rin a smart answer, something that might show he hadn't changed at all since their last meeting, but

 

 _he couldn't_. 

 

Not since that time, not since graduation and Rin leaving for Australia, leaving Haru behind yet again with all these feelings

 

Rin pulled the towel away, and gave Haru's hair a good rub with his bare hand before shoving the towel onto Haru's bare back with his right hand. If Haru had looked up, he would have seen Rin's blush in the mirror. He relaxed his grip on the sink’s edge as Rin lightly ran a fingertip across his white knuckles.

 

If Haru had done lots of things, then maybe they wouldn't have turned out his way. Without looking up, Haru exited the bathroom, pushing the door shut behind him – all without looking at Rin.

 

Rin, who wore a confused, lost expression, still clutching a small towel in one hand, staring at the spot where Haru had left the cramped space. 

 

* * *

 

 

When Rin emerged from his shower, the room was lit up. Several lamps were on around the room, running alongside a few dim ceiling lights. He stood there staring for a bit, slowly taking in the details, such as Haru, in fresh clothes and damp hair, sitting on the edge of a bed. A single bed. 

 

"Rin." Haru was frowning at him. "Get dressed. You'll catch a cold." The last bit had been soft, muttered, but Rin heard it all the same. Outside of his control, his heartbeat sped up slightly, and no amount of willing it down would have any effect.

 

"Why, what's the rush? You were walking around in just your swimsuit earlier. I have a towel." Rin pointed at the white cloth hanging from his hips. Truth be told, it was a bit low; maybe he shouldn't have told Haru to look. 

 

But when Rin looked back up, Haru's line of sight was not directed at him, nor anywhere in his vicinity. Haru was refusing to meet his eyes; that was a problem that had to be addressed. 

 

That, and the single bed (thankfully not single-sized) in the room. 

 

Pulling out a few necessities from his bag, Rin headed back to the bathroom briefly before pulling on a sleeveless top and sweatpants. These in particular he had worn while still attending Samezuka; the fit now had definitely changed since a few months ago. 

 

Still toweling his wet hair, Rin finally walked over to where Haru was seated, perched at the end of the bed. He seemed to be studying the fancy carpet pattern. 

 

"Oi, Haru. Look at me," Rin ground out. Slowly, Haru raised his head and stared back, albeit blankly. The sudden lack of emotional response compared to earlier was something Rin urgently wanted to address, but first.... the bed issue. 

 

"So. The bed. What are we going to do about that?" Rin felt his cheeks heat up, but didn't allow himself to look away from Haru’s empty gaze. Or cover up his red face. Haru cocked his head, confused but looking much more present than a few moments ago. 

 

"Aren't you going to ask the front for another room? With a second bed..." Haru trailed off, head still tilted, studying Rin as if he had suddenly become a whole new person, and Haru was trying to figure him out.

 

He could understand Haru’s confusion slightly, if Haru was basing his question off previous experience. However one might look at it, accident or no, they _had_ shared a bed many times in the past. Even if the only time Rin could remember being particularly willing was the _first_. After that sleepover when they were twelve, Rin had managed to end up in the same bed over _three_ times in the last year: Yet another sleepover (attempting to tease Haru, he had accidentally fallen asleep while the dark-haired boy was in the bath), Australia, and then….

 

Two unfortunate times where Rin was sure he had gone to sleep on his own futon. Had it been a nightmare? Or maybe a byproduct of a painful discussion; he still wasn’t sure and doubted Haru would ever admit anything to him.

 

After not seeing Haru for a few months, at this point he wasn’t exactly averse to spending the night in the same bed. He told Haru as such, delighting in the unanticipated widening of his eyes. Haru nodded his head, at a lack for words Rin guessed gleefully.

 

“Plus,” Rin yawned. It was getting late. “With all of the swimmers flying in, you really think they’d have a spare double room around?” He pulled his arms behind his back, linking them and stretching his body out. “There’s no room for a spare in here anyway, and those couches don’t exactly look comfortable.” Haru seemed more interested in the cracks coming from Rin’s back then his words, which was slightly annoying. Something was up with Haru tonight, but after a tiring day of flying neither of them were in the right shape to address it.

 

As if something had snapped, Rin let go of the stretch, and strode back to the entrance to turn off the main lights. “It’ll be dark in a second,” he warned. He heard Haru moving around on the bed as he flipped the switch, then headed to the lamps and turned them off as well. He was left with only a dim bedside lamp to guide the way as he approached the right side of the bed—

 

– and proceeded to almost knee Haru in the chest.

 

Luckily, his reflexes had kicked in last minute, and Haru had only received a soft knock, but he glared up at Rin nonetheless.

 

“Sorry, sorry!” Rin rubbed his neck sheepishly, dropping the cover he had pulled up back over Haru’s body. As he fumbled his way to the other side of the bed, Haru spoke up: “…it’s fine.” And then, “…this is how we slept in Australia.”

 

Rin froze as he was climbing under the sheets. Haru was likely aware of the large contrast between that time, when he had fought tooth and nail for a second bed, somehow, and now, when even in his tiredness, he had immediately succumbed to another shared night. Shakily, he finished getting into bed, and was about to snap back when Haru shifted.

 

“I’m turning off the lights,” Haru stated, in a soft voice, softer than Rin had heard from him all night. He bit back the embarrassed reply, and turned on his side away from Haru. _Again_ , a voice in his head whispered.

 

The room was plunged into darkness, and Haru shifted back into a comfortable position. Neither had bothered adjusting the room’s air-conditioning, and their body temperatures had dropped quite a bit from their baths.

 

Rin considered getting out of the warm bed, but ultimately decided against it. It was warm enough with Haru next to him, he thought, and pushed back a bit from the edge. Closer…even closer to Haru’s tantalizing warmth. Rin gulped. Things felt so much more awkward since last time, probably because of _that_. Stupid _discussion_ , Rin cursed. Not coming face-to-face since then was doing a number on—

 

Haru rolled over, and Rin inhaled sharply.

 

“Good night, Rin…” Haru whispered, and Rin’s body warmed up.

 

“You too….Haru….”

 

Rin wanted to say more, but Haru’s breathing was beginning to even out, and he would’ve hated to stop him from sleeping off whatever strange mood had been hovering over him today.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

The bed was comfortable.

 

Not that Rin was surprised. At the mattress being soft, that is. The more surprising part was the fact that his heart rate could remain so steady when Haru was sleeping _inches_ away. A more accurate statement would be _lying_ there, since both of them were wide awake. Rin knew this because Haru kept fidgeting when he was usually virtually unmoving after falling asleep, the only indication of him being alive the slight rise-and-fall of his chest. Rin had been able to observe this when they were _not_ sleeping in the same bed, no problem.

 

What had happened to his steady breathing, Rin asked himself wryly. Maybe Haru had taken too many naps earlier to sleep properly. Maybe he really should have started talking, to dispel some of this strange tension; it _had_ worked in Australia.

 

But when he opened his mouth to start a conversation for the second time in that bed, a hand suddenly came to rest on his neck –

 

— and Rin momentarily forgot how to breathe.

 

“Haru?” His voice came out scratchy, surprising even him. Haru didn’t respond, and another hand pressed against his back. Rin suddenly knew what to do to dispel the uncertainty and upset that had been plaguing Haru since probably before his arrival.

 

“Hang on,” he grunted. “I’m coming.”

 

If he had already been facing the other way, he might have made out Haru’s slight frown in the faint nighttime light coming from the window. But the purpose of his words was to _warn_ Haru that he was turning over, so he turned and just missed the barely-there expression.

 

 

Somehow, Rin knew something was up, Haru guessed. Suddenly, Rin was lying facing him for some unknown reason. His features were obscured by the shadow of his body, blocking any possibly light, taking away any possible hint as to what Rin was actually thinking.

 

Haru hadn’t expected to be overcome with so many negative emotions on this trip. In the few hours since he’d arrived, all he’d thought of was _Rin, Rin, Rin_. No pool, no thoughts of swimming even though the whole purpose of this trip was to compete. He knew he’d have to shake off this fog before the first heat, or else his limbs would undergo another paralysis and likely destroy any confidence he had built up in his strength.

 

He felt odd; even after Rin had arrived, he’d had trouble interacting with him, preferring to keep his eyes away and only allow himself to bask in the other swimmer’s presence. The strange feelings in his chest had moved, lowering themselves and Haru had felt almost queasy with butterflies flapping in his stomach.

 

Rin reached out; there was a flurry of movement, and all of a sudden Haru felt very warm. He was trapped against Rin’s chest, locked in place by muscular arms.

 

“Are…are you nervous, Haru?” Rin murmured. Haru nodded against Rin’s neck, tickling him with his hair. He had been excited, but nervous to see Rin after so long. He was still nervous, for the upcoming meet.

 

Haru had slept far too much since the plane. He settled his legs more comfortably in between Rin’s, wound his arms around the thicker torso, and nuzzled the underside of Rin’s chin. He would get comfortable now, so that when Rin fell asleep, he wouldn’t wake him with the slight movements he would make. He could stroke Rin’s back, kiss his neck – which he had done _last time_ , and Rin was too busy blushing to complain, so he could go through with it this time again—

 

“Haru,” Rin sounded disapproving. For a second, Haru panicked, wondering if somehow Rin had developed Makoto-level understanding of his thoughts. “You… it would be better if you slept. There’s still the time difference to get used to after all.” Relieved, but silently pouting, Haru felt Rin move his head. “…we’ll talk about _tha_ _t_ in the morning.”

 

They hadn’t addressed it directly all night, but there had been more than just neck kisses last time. Which no one had also brought up since, even throughout their communication while Rin was overseas. _That_ was probably the cause of Haru’s longing, eagerness to see Rin and yet his incapability of holding eye contact until Rin made a proper move.

 

Haru brushed his lips over Rin’s adam’s apple, just to see. Rin flinched, taking Haru with him, and growled. “Haaruuu…”

 

Haru shushed him. “You said morning, remember?” Surrounded with Rin, like this, Haru definitely felt a lot better. They’d fix things, tomorrow. And then, he’d have a few weeks to sleep sharing this hotel bed with Rin. Following that, Rin had planned a short visit to Tokyo, and if they addressed everything properly Haru had no doubt that Rin would share with him some more. After that, they would see…

 

In revenge, Rin tightened his hug, and Haru felt the breath leave his lungs. “Riin!” he protested, but the squeezing lasted another few seconds before the hug loosened, and Haru drew in a deep breath. Before he could reprimand Rin though, he was squeezed again, but only so that they could shift onto the pillows.

 

Relaxing his head, Haru stared at the shadowed face facing right back. Rin was still holding him, still extremely close, and while all forms of physical contact generally repelled Haru, Rin was special. Sharing a bed with Rin held special meaning.

 

“Good night, Haru.” Rin told him properly, his breath ghosting across Haru’s face. As much as he had already slept, Haru allowed the warmth of being held close to lull him to sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> I might have created too much background xD but I wanted to presage the awkwardness with context and minor conflict that could eventually be resolved. I couldn't help that little bit of angst though O.o (I never can!)
> 
> I really wanted to write a continuation/epilogue, but I had no time so it'll have to come later (._.)  
> If I ever have extra time, then I wish to write more in this Universe!
> 
>  
> 
> P.S.: It's actually Ikuya (maybe!) but we'll only get there next story x_x


End file.
